From Shooting heroin in the slums of Staten Island to boating and building beach houses in the Bahamas, Slipping Into Darkness Blinded by the Light is a story of trials and triumphs, despair and faith, pride and shame. Once you embark upon this spiritual sojourn, as you laugh and you cry, one thing's for certain-you won't want it to end.

At the tender age of five, Melanie knew her mother's impending marriage was a mistake. She spent the following eight years in a home filled with domestic violence, which resulted in her becoming an adolescent heroin addict.

In rehab, she...